Bayern Munich celebrated their 115th birthday with some Friday fireworks as they cantered past Koln 4-1 for a fourth league win in a row.

Captain Bastian Schweinsteiger and Franck Ribery got Bayern off to a blitz start with two goals inside the opening 10 minutes, but the Bavarians eased off, and Anthony Ujah brought the visitors back into the game with a deft header past Manuel Neuer on the stroke of halftime. Neuer made a double save after the break to keep the champions ahead before Arjen Robben...

The ESPN FC crew compare Arjen Robben's remarkable season to the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi.

Diego Costa, Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi. These were the only three to win the ESPN FC Player of the Month award prior to the month of January, when our poll was overrun by Newcastle supporters and Remy Cabella's name was added to the list. Newcastle's French attacker won't have the chance to repeat, but Messi does have the opportunity to keep the list of recipients a short one.

Europe's top performers in February have been whittled to a three-man short list in consultation with WhoScored.com...

Borussia Dortmund claimed derby honours over Schalke, while Bayern Munich extended their lead at the top.

Manuel Neuer made a number of world class saves, as Bayern Munich ran away with a 4-1 win at home to Cologne.

Like so often in the recent past, Bayern Munich were indebted to Arjen Robben and Manuel Neuer for match-winning and match-saving performances which ensured their 115th birthday celebrations did not turn into a damp squib.

When skipper Bastian Schweinsteiger and Franck Ribery fired Bayern into a two-goal lead inside the opening 10 minutes, another cricket score looked on the cards against Cologne. But Bayern took the foot off the throttle, allowing the visitors back into the game and were suitably...

Bayern Munich coach Pep Guardiola is pleased with how many goals his side have been scoring of late, but still thinks they can get even better.

As I was researching a story last year on Robert Lewandowski's protracted transfer from Borussia Dortmund to Bayern Munich, I asked a well-placed source about rumours that Pep Guardiola didn't actually want the Polish striker.

"I can't tell you anything about that," came the answer. "Can't tell" because he didn't know, or "can't tell" because he didn't want to tell? You have to be careful about jumping to conclusions when faced with such ambivalence. I ignored the reply for the purpose of the...

Bayern Munich defender Holger Badstuber has targeted a return to the German national team after spending two years on the injury list.

Bayern Munich have been one of the best teams in the world over the past three seasons -- a statement even their fiercest rivals would find hard to dispute. This is a Bayern machine that has lost just four league games in three campaigns, romping to the title by margins of 25 and 19 points, respectively, in the previous two seasons. Bearing this in mind, it's always a major event when the Reds fail to win or, God forbid, lose a game. After Bayern took a while to rise themselves from their hibernation...

The ESPN FC crew compare Arjen Robben's remarkable season to the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi.

Despite seeing his side humbled 6-0 at home by Bayern Munich on Saturday, Paderborn manager Andre Breitenreiter waxed lyrical at the news conference and thanked "the world's best team and trainer for a wonderful experience." Perhaps the fact Breitenreiter is a former Bayern forward might explain his overly gracious post-match comments.

Admittedly, Bayern didn't have to be that good to beat a limited Paderborn side, but they were phenomenally effective in front of goal -- scoring from six of 17...